Scarlet Locket
by julianaacao
Summary: All is well in the Fairy Tail guild. At least until Erza goes missing after a supposed "meeting" with Jellal and Crime Sorciere. Now, Lucy, Natsu, Mira and Levy have to travel to a mysterious town, with only a strange scarlet-coloured locket to guide them.
1. Chapter 1

(Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or the characters. If I did, Jerza would be canon and Ultear wouldn't be an old lady anymore…)

Chapter 1:

Lucy's pov:

Natsu and Gray were fighting. Again. No big surprise there. Lucy looked around. Where was Erza? This quarrel had been going on for hours now, and my head felt like it was going to explode. Erza was nowhere to be seen. She sighed, knowing that without her around, Natsu and Gray would fight until both of them passed out. This was strange, though. The last time I had seen Erza was yesterday when she said she needed to talk to Jellal. Lucy was worried, even though I knew that Erza was more than capable of fending for herself. Why did she need to talk to Jellal? Oh well, the celestial mage thought, I have more important things to do than worry about her. That won't do any good anyways.

"Hey, you two! How long are you going to fight for? And why are you even fighting in the first place?" Lucy yelled at Gray and Natsu. They looked up.

"Not fair. How come you're acting like Erza now? I thought I would finally be able to beat Gray up without her around!", complained Natsu.

"Beat me up? Fat chance," replied Gray. Then they went back to arguing about something to do with octopuses and slime. Go figure. The last argument was about talking chocolate bars and they had only stopped fighting when Gray mentioned Acnologia and Igneel. That was harsh

Lucy wanted to go look for Erza, but she decided against it, imagining Erza's expression when she suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Anyways, the S-class mage was WAY more capable of fighting than she was. She would just get in the way. It wasn't like her to disappear for days without telling someone in the guild, though...

"Hey Plue, where do you think Erza is? Do you think she's in trouble?" Lucy asked the spirit. Plue looked thoughtful. Well, that's a first, thought Lucy. Suddenly, Levy came running up to her.

"Lucy! Come quickly! I have to show you something really important." Levy looked nervous. Lucy quickly ran after her towards the Girls' dormitory, Fairy Hills.

.  
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 **So...Here's the first chapter! Hope you like it! This my first fanfiction and I'm in 7th grade so only constructive criticism, please. Please review! I'll be updating every week or** so, **unless I say otherwise.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

 **Hi guys! So here's the 2nd chapter. Sorry for the extremely short first one. I wasn't sure if anyone would read the story. I've tried to make this one longer, but, let's be honest, I'm kinda boring when i write long things. Well, onto the story!**

Lucy's pov:

As Lucy raced after her friend, she wondered what Levy had to show her that was so important. She couldn't think of any reason. Unless...No. That wasn't possible. Lucy tried to push that troubling thought out of her head as she ran towards the dormitory. Suddenly, Lucy realized that Jet and Droy weren't hanging around Levy like they usually were.

"Um...Levy? Where's the rest of Team Shadow Gear?" asked Lucy.

"They went on a job without me. I was going to go with them, but them I found something strange that I swear I'd never seen before. That's what I'm going to show you right now." replied Levy as they approached the Fairy Hills.

Fairy Hills was a luxurious and spacious dormitory room that the guild owned. Almost all of the female guild members lived here. Levy ran up the stairs two at a time, Lucy right on her heels. They reached a room, and Levy opened the door.

"Hey...why didn't you lock the door to your room? You know someone could steal something." Lucy warned.

"This isn't my room. It's Erza's. I didn't break in, I was looking to ask her about something. Don't ask me why she didn't lock the door when she left. That girl makes no sense to me," replied Levy as she flipped through piles of paper on one of the desks. Wow, thought Lucy, Erza might be strict, but her room looks like a tornado just ripped through it. And she won't be happy when she finds out Levy was snooping around in her stuff.

"And you found this thing in her room? How do you even know it's important? It could just be some random spoil of war from a monster she killed on a job," argued Lucy. She didn't want to bicker with her friend, but Lucy had to admit that this whole really important thing business was more than a little suspicious.

"Calm down, Lucy. I visit Erza practically every day. I know her belongings like the back of my hand."

"Ok. That is seriously creepy. Who pays attention to that kind of stuff? Anyways, are you going to show me something or not? I have to go home and continue writing my novel." Lucy was starting to lose her patience. Everything about this situation had PRANK scribbled all over it. Then again...Levy wouldn't lie to her, would she? No. Probably not.

"Found it!" Levy shouted in triumph as she held up a small, bright red object connected to a chain. A locket. Lucy was confused. Why would Levy go to so much trouble to show her some accessory? And yet...the locket did radiate some sort of magical power. Strange.

"Um, Levy? That's just a locket. It does have some sort of magical power coming from it, but what's so special about it? There're a lot of things in Magnolia that contains magic power even if they're not supposed to. And how do you know it wasn't just hidden somewhere you've never looked before?" Lucy was skeptical. Magic items came in all shapes and forms. She remembered the one time she encountered a talking stick while fighting the Oracion Seis. That was not fun at all.

"Lucy, I swear it wasn't here before. Despite what you may think, not many things in Erza's suite radiate such intense magical power." Levy said as she stared at the locket, mystified by its presence.

"Maybe...but she might have just bought it before she left. When was the last time you were here? I mean, before that time you wanted to look for her." Lucy tried to keep her patience. It was Levy, after all. One of her closest friends in the guild.

" Last week. She invited me over to talk about...That's weird. I don't remember what we talked about." Now Lucy was worried. Levy usually had an exceptionally good memory. She couldn't have forgotten a conversation she'd had a week ago.

"Levy-" Lucy started to say something, but she was cut off by an eerie creaking sound, like a squeaky step or an old door being opened.

"Wh-what was that?" Levy asked nervously as she looked around, half expecting someone to attack them.

"Why are you asking me? If I knew, I would tell you. Come on, let's get out of here before something bad happens." Lucy grabbed Levy by the arm and started running out of Erza's room. Lucy was worried that Erza had come back from her meeting and was going to kill them for invading her place.

"Um...Lucy? Why is the locket _glowing?_ This is creepy. I told you there was something odd about it. And...that creaking noise? It was coming from the same source." Levy stared at the locket in terror.

"Ok, fine, I'll admit that you were right _this time._ But what do we do with it? Take it to the guild and have Gramps take a look at it?" Levy nodded, and the two girls ran out of the dormitory towards the Guild hall. Seems like whatever made that creaking sound isn't chasing us, thought Lucy, But I better keep my guard up, just in case.

As Lucy and Levy struggled through the crowded streets of Magnolia, many citizens stared at the glowing bright red artifact in Levy's hands. A couple of young children tried to tug on the chain that the locket was attached to.

"Geez, kids. Have your parents never taught you manners? Don't touch people's things without permission!" Lucy scolded the kids. Unfortunately, the kids didn't listen. They continued to tug and play with the exposed ends of the locket, and Levy was doing all she could to prevent them from stealing it. We're being assaulted by kids, thought Lucy, This is embarrassing….

"Lucy!" Levy called," Open some gate! Get them away! They're going to break the locket if this keeps up. I can't believe we're being attacked by little kids, though," she added, mirroring Lucy's thoughts exactly. No wonder the two got along so well.

"On it! Open, Gate of the Little Dog, Nicola!" Shouted Lucy. Plue popped out of thin air, and started dancing. The children squealed at the sight of the adorable little spirit. Never thought my triumph card would be a Plue, Lucy thought with amusement as she watched the scene the kids were making.

"Come on, Lucy, let's go! We have to get to the guild ASAP." Lucy ran down the street after Levy, closing Plue's gate at the same time. The children were disappointed as the spirit disintegrated.

The two girls burst through the doors of the Guild Hall to find the place bustling with activity, as usual. Gray and Natsu were arguing about something _again_ , and Lucy couldn't help but think about how strange it was not to have Erza around to break them up. Maybe the locket has to do with her being away from the guild for so long, Lucy thought worriedly.

"Hey, Gramps!"Levy shouted, waving to the master who was sitting with Mira near the bar. He got up and slowly walked towards them.

"What is it now? Don't tell me something with the Magic Council. Those jerks keep making me pay damage fees." Makorov was obviously very drunk. This wasn't the time to tell him about their new find.

"Gramps! Snap out of it! We have to tell you something really important. It's about Erza. We might have a lead on where she is right now." Levy quickly explained as Makorov shook his head, trying to clear the effects of alcohol.

"I wouldn't worry. That girl is more than capable of taking care of herself. She's probably out there somewhere killing monsters as we speak. Though she _did_ say that she was going to meet Jellal. That shouldn't take so long…" The master drifted into thought. Mirajane had walked over and was standing nearby, looking thoughtful.

"Hey..guys? I just had a thought. I remember Cana being really suspicious about Erza meeting Jellal. If I remember right, she have her one of those call cards and told her to use the card if she was in trouble, or if she was going to be gone for more than 3 days. How many days has it been?" Mira speculated. That got Lucy thinking. She felt like it had been around 3 days since she last saw Erza, but it could have been more. Why hadn't Erza used the call card if she knew she was going to be away for longer?

"I don't know," said Levy," I think-" Levy was interrupted by a loud whizzing sound coming from the locket.

"Hello, Fairy Tail members! My name is...Well I don't have a name. I'm a locket." Lucy almost jumped out of her skin.

"Holy crap, that thing can _talk?_ " yelled Lucy as she frantically waved her arms around in surprise.

"That's creepy," agreed Mira," It does explain why there's so much magical power inside of it, though. I can feel it from all the way over here!"

The door creaked open, and Natsu and Happy walked in, waving.

"Hey, Guys! What're you doing? And why is Levy's hand glowing?" Natsu was clueless as usual.

"Natsu, my hand isn't glowing. I'm holding a glowing locket." Natsu looked confused. He sniffed the room, looking very idiotic as he did so.

"Ok...does that explain why the whole room reeks of….I don't know. It just smells weird," Natsu replied, sniffing some more. Well, Natsu's nose doesn't lie, thought Lucy.

"Hey, are you just going to ignore me?" shouted the locket. Well, technically it didn't _shout_ because it didn't have a mouth.

"Hey...So it's true!" yelled Natsu, as he awkwardly pranced around the room in celebration," That thing can talk! Yay! Hey, can I have a conversation with it?"

Lucy shook her head in exasperation. "No, Natsu, you can't have a conversation with a locket. It just doesn't make sense. Hey, Levy, any idea what the importance if this thing is?" Before Levy could answer, the locket cut in.

"You dare call me an "it"? How dare you disrespect me? And I'll tell you why I'm important, and why you better not piss me off. I know where your red-headed friend is, and how you guild members can get her back." said the locket matter-of-factly. Man, thought Lucy, who knew a locket could have attitude?

"Wait…" said Levy," Red-headed friend. You guys think he means Erza? Would explain why he was hiding in her room"

"How dare you assume my gender!" Yelled the locket in rage. This was getting awkward. A gender-fluid locket with bad attitude was telling them that he/she/it knew where Erza was. Why do I get myself involved in these kinds of situations all the time?, wondered Lucy.

 **So, how'd you like the 2nd chapter? Review. Rate, and comment!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

 **Hey guys! I'm so, so sorry that I haven't updated in a really long time, but things happen. I went to New York over the Winter break, the I had 2 essays due as well as a Science project AT THE SAME TIME. which sucked. so yea. Enjoy the story! (oh yea and like nobody's gonna read this but whatever. Don't forget to review, I really like when people do so!)**

It had been three days since the Locket Incident, and Lucy and Levy hadn't figured out anything new yet. It was starting to get frustrating. The locket didn't seem to be making an effort to help them, either. It constantly complained that it was hungry, even though it didn't have a mouth. Or a stomach. Lucy shuddered at the thought of a glowing blood-red necklace with a mouth full of sharp canines.

"Ok, wizards of Fairy Tail! So today I finally decided to tell you guys more about me and how we're going to save Erza! Isn't that helpful of me?" Mr. Glo, as Natsu had randomly named him, announced. So far, the locket had yet to complain about his new name. Apparently, the only wizard Mr. Glo tolerated was Natsu. Maybe because his fire was the same colour as the locket. Lucy didn't know, and she didn't think she _wanted_ to know.

'Yeah, sure. Just hurry up and say it already. You're not going to help anybody by waiting around until a miracle comes," complained Gray. Lucy shot him a look. Better not make the locket mad so he would finally tell them something useful instead of complaining that it needed a bath. Who knew?

"To kill a tree, you must pull it up from its roots. To plant a tree, you must protect those roots. To locate a tree, start at its roots. It's all in the roots," the locket said in a strangely serious voice. The mages groaned. What on earth was that supposed to mean? They'd expected a straight-forwards answer, no something cloaked in riddles.

"Hey, at least it's a start. Now we've got something to work with instead of trying to find a pin in a haystack," Mira said optimistically.

"Yeah, I guess, but does anybody have an idea what that means?" inquired Levy. The wizards shook their heads.

"To locate a tree….You must start with the roots. Ok, that seems like some useless riddle. I mean, what do _trees_ and _roots_ have to do with finding Erza?" complained Natsu as he tried to process what Mr. Glo said. Then Lucy noticed that Happy wasn't with him. Strange.

"Um, Natsu? Where's Happy?"

"Oh, he went off somewhere with Carla. Though I can't exactly say she wanted to. Happy kind of dragged her along," replied Natsu, still staring at the locket. Lucy giggled. Who knew an Exceed could have a romantic life? _Well, I guess it's possible, if lockets can talk in riddles._ Suddenly, Makarov spoke up. He'd been so quiet, the group had almost forgotten about him. Which seemed unlike the old man.

"I think I may have an idea what the locket means," he started," Lucy, Natsu. Do you remember what Erza told you about her childhood during the Tower of Heaven incident?" Both mages nodded, still confused where Makarov was going with this.

"Well," the masted continued," I remember you telling me how she told you about that village where she and Simon lived before they were abducted to work for the Tower. Do you remember what it was called?" Lucy thought for a moment. She did have the vaguest memory of Erza telling them about a village that been attacked when she had been kidnapped. But she had no idea what it was called.

"Ha. Even _I_ remember. It's called the Rosemary village. But, like, I remember Erza saying that it burned down when all the children were abducted to work for the R-System. It's probably a bunch of rubble now, and I bet nobody even lives there," said Natsu, getting impatient. He absentmindedly started lighting random objects on fire, which filled the whole room with the pungent odour of smoke.

"Natsu, stop that. You know, I _really_ wish we had a fire alarm here," sighed Lucy. The other guild mages looked at her like she was crazy. Then suddenly everybody burst into laughter. Except for Natsu. He stared, dumbfounded, at everybody.

"I don't get it. How is a fire alarm so funny? I don't like fire alarms. They're loud," complained Natsu, finally putting out his fire. Lucy shook her head.

"Never mind. Hey guys, I have an idea. Let's ask Kagura. She's Simon's sister, right? She can probably give us some useful information," Levy said. Mira seemed to have tuned out, and she had a faraway expression on her face. Makarov tapped her on the shoulder, and the transformation mage came back to reality. She looked confused.

"What's everybody staring at?" asked Mirajane quizzically. Suddenly, everybody came out of their trance and started laughing uncontrollably. Again. _At this rate, we're never going to get anything done,_ thought Lucy. She nudged a giggling Levy, trying to stop her from laughing because she was spitting all over Lucy. Natsu snorted fire, and finally, with a shout from Makarov, everybody stopped laughing.

"That was... _random._ Ok, here's the plan. We go to the Mermaid Heel guild hall, and ask to speak with Kagura. Then we'll just kind of improvise, _a lot,_ and hope we get some sort of useful information," explained Lucy.

"That's the worst plan ever," said Natsu,"I mean, what happens if the Master refuses to let us talk to her? Or if she's on a job? I mean, I know I'm not the smartest person alive, but even _I_ can think of a million ways this could go wrong. AND WHY IS THIS SO FREAKING DIFFICULT I HATE YOU STUPID MR. GLO!" Natsu suddenly lost his temper and stomped out of the room. In their discussion, the wizards hadn't noticed that most of the others had left for some reason.

"I swear, Natsu needs to learn to hold his temper. I mean, I bet he's never heard of _patience_ ," sighed Levy.

"Well, I guess we don't need that rock-headed fool," said Makarov," But I do agree with Natsu. We can't waste a whole lot of time running back and forth from their guild hall to ours, hoping Kagura'll be there."

"Then what do you suggest?" asked Mira. She looked like she was still trying really hard not to laugh at herself. Lucy still wondered why she had suddenly blanked out. _Its probably nothing,_ she thought.

"I don't know. The guild hall doesn't have a phone, and I suspect neither does Mermaid Heel. I bet nobody here even _knows_ where their guild hall is!" said Levy, exasperated.

"You know, the burning of the village happened, like, five years ago. That's a pretty long time if you think about it. So what if they had built another village where Rosemary used to be and now people live there?" concluded Lucy. Pieces of the puzzle were slowly falling into place. But something was missing…. Suddenly, the guild hall doors exploded.


	4. Chapter 4

Thankfully, the guild hall was relatively empty. Lucy lost track of where everybody else was, and she could hear shouting. Something smashed against the floor. Smoke was everywhere, the pungent odour filling her nostrils. _What on earth is happening?_ wondered Lucy as she tried to get up off of the floor.

"Hey! Somebody help me!" shouted a voice that Lucy was already beginning to get tired of. The locket was trapped under the request board, and it seemed to be shouting for help. Suddenly, a lean, shadowed, female figure filled the broken doorway. It was Kagura Mikazuchi, and she did _not_ look happy. She had an annoyed scowl on her face, and her sword Archenemy was stuck into the ground at her feet. Lucy could barely stop herself from whimpering. Kagura looked so terrifying. _Stop acting like a baby,_ she chided herself.

"Um….Hey, Kagura. What do you need?" asked Levy. Lucy guessed that she was thinking the same thing as her. _Well, Kagura's here, so that's one less thing on our to-do list. What could she want, though?_

"I need to talk to Erza. Something is off. I sense it. Something to do with Jellal. I had a dream last night. I don't like the sound of it," replied Kagura, looking around the room trying to spot Erza. Lucy's heart skipped a beat. Kagura had sensed something off about Erza and Jellal. _So it isn't just us…._

"Erm…," hesitated Lucy. She knew Kagura would probably throw a fit and destroy everything within a 10-kilometer radius if she found out Erza was missing. Kagura looked furious, which was rare considering the Mermaid Hell mage seemed like she was made of stone most of the time.

"She's missing," blurted Levy quickly. She was terrified of how Kagura would react to this news. As she predicted, the Gravity mage's eyes shone with rage as she pulled her sword out of the ground. Kagura's usually calm and collected demeanor gave way to rage and worry for her friend. _Should we share the news about the locket with her?_ wondered Lucy. She wasn't sure if that would appear as good or bad news to her. Probably both.

"Jellal, I swear…," started Kagura. Suddenly, something clicked in Lucy's mind. Kagura probably still hated Jellal for killing her brother Simon. Now that she had befriended Erza, the last thing she would want would be Jellal coming in contact with her. None of the Fairy Tail mages could deny the fact that those two were somewhat close to a romantic relationship, but Kagura probably didn't know that.

"Hey, cheer up. At least we've got something to help us," said Mira. Leave it to her to be optimistic. Nobody in the guild hated Mirajane because she was always so sunny and cheerful, even when something bad happened.

"What is it?" asked Kagura. Lucy could tell that she was trying to sound hopeful, but her eyes betrayed her. They were as dark as a storm cloud, conveying worry for Erza and hatred for Jellal. _Geez, this girl is scary!_ thought Lucy.

"Well, "started Levy," I was searching her room when I came across this." Levy pulled out Mr. Glo from her pocket and held it out to Kagura. The Mermaid Heel mage glared at the locket, as if she could somehow scare it into telling her where Erza was.

"And where'd you find this...this _thing?_ " asked Kagura disgustingly. The locket then started to glow again, signaling that it was about to start talking once more.

"Oh, hello there! I heard that you just called me a _thing_. I find that extremely rude. Please do not call me that in the future." the locket said curtly. Kagura obviously didn't like objects that showed attitude. She forcefully ripped Mr. Glo out of Levy's hand and clenched it in her fist. The locket seemed to make a squeaking sound.

"Eeps! Excuse me, but your hand is sweaty. I would appreciate it if you would carefully let go of me, please." The locket's voice was muffled because of Kagura's tight fist around it. Hesitantly, Kagura released the locket and dropped it on the floor.

"Ok," she said," And did the locket tell you anything useful? Something that could help up find Erza?" Lucy noticed how Kagura had said "us". She wondered if that meant the two guilds would be working in unison. _Could that possibly happen?_ asked Lucy to herself. She wasn't sure if two guilds working together would be helpful or not.

"Well, it gave us some sort of prophecy or riddle. It sounded important, but none of us can figure it out," said Levy.

"Yeah? What did it say?" asked Kagura. She seemed hopeful despite the fact that Levy had just mentioned that the riddle was confusing. Lucy and Levy together recited what the locket had said to Kagura. The Mermaid Hell mage didn't interrupt. She just stood there quietly, occasionally nodding her head to show she was listening. Once they were done, Kagura finally spoke.

"I get it. Erza's the tree. So to find her, we need to go to Rosemary Village, which is where she, Simon, and I grew up together." The Fairy Tail wizards nodded. That at least made a little bit of sense.

"Why a tree, though? Trees burn too easily. I don't like trees. Kemo-kemo also turned into a tree…." Natsu drifted into thought. Lucy hadn't thought about Kemo-kemo in years. She suddenly remembered the strange creature Natsu had adopted who turned out to be a plant god.

"Natsu, I don't know. Maybe Mr. Glo is dating a tree, or maybe he just likes tree references," suggested Lucy.

"I _heard_ that! And I am certainly _not_ dating a tree. Stop talking behind my back," the locket shot back. Apparently, Mr. Glo was an expert eavesdropper from his spot on the floor. That didn't help Lucy's image of the locket.

"Ok. This is getting nowhere. We need to get to Rosemary Village as fast as we can, and hope we can get some sort of clue there," said Kagura. Kagura was a natural leader. Everybody in the guild knew that. The wizards nodded, until Natsu brought up an argument.

"Um, correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the village burn down when the people from the R-system came and attacked? You know, when your brother and Erza were kidnapped? Just saying…." Natsu cowered under Kagura's steely gaze when he mentioned her brother.

"Yes, the village was burned down that day. But some people say another village has been built and now people inhabit it. Personally, I've never been there. It brings back too many bad memories," explained the Mermaid Heel mage.

"Ok. So the only way to find out is to go there. Um, i mean, Kagura, if you don't want to go, you don't have to…" Lucy glanced at Kagura, who shook her head.

"No. I'm coming. If you guys are launching a rescue party for Erza, I have to be part of it." Lucy admired Kagura's determination to save their friend.

"Ok then, it's settled. Kagura will accompany a small group of Fairy Tail members on a quest to the new Rosemary village. Whatever they find there, I don't know. We could ask Cana, but she's out on a job, sadly," said Mira.

"Who should go? I don't think everybody going will be a good idea. As Mirajane said, we don't know what we'll find there. I think a smaller group will be safer," advised Kagura. The Fairy Tail mages nodded. Kagura did have some really great advice sometimes. Lucy thought about her terrifying battle during the GMG and how she had confronted Yukino of Sabertooth after their match. Sh remembered how Kagura had spoken to Yukino, saying how her life was now in forfeit.

"Well, I think Levy should go. She's the one who found the locket in the first place. And Mira should come. She's now the strongest wizard in the guild with Erza out of commission and Gildarts out on _another_ job." replied Lucy. Personally, she really wanted to go, but the Celestial mage knew her powers weren't as strong as some of the others.

"You should go to, Lucy. You're smart, and you have more directional sense than any of us. And either Natsu or Gray should go, They're pretty powerful mages, and I doubt we would be _able_ to convince them not to go. We shouldn't let them both some, though. That would be chaotic," said Levy. Lucy blushed with the praise. From across the room, Gray yelled back at them.

"Sorry, I'm not coming. Let Flame Brain go. I'm actually happy that Erza isn't around to boss us around," said Gray lazily. From behind one of the pillars, Lucy could spot Juvia spying on Gray with a moony expression.

"Fine…." sighed Lucy," Where's Natsu then?" She glanced around the room, hoping to find Natsu somewhere so they could get to Rosemary Village before dusk. Gray shrugged.

"Dunno. Probably-" he was cut off by somebody opening the door loudly and dropping something heavy on the floor. Natsu. Perfect timing.

"Hey, Natsu," called Lucy, beckoning him over with a wave of her hand," What's that in the giant bag you have?"  
"I was shopping," announced the fire mage proudly. Opening the bag, Natsu pulled out a couple of things.

Um…." said Lucy. She was pretty sure that Natsu had bought something ridiculously stupid, like that one time he came back with one of those human-sized pink frog costumes Frosh had.

"I got a map, a compass, and a birthday candle match," explained Natsu. Lucy shook her head. They didn't _need_ a map, a compass, _or_ a colourful kiddie match. They had Wi-Fi, Pyxis the compass spirit, and _Natsu_ could provide fire for them. Unless he was planning to eat the fire from the lighter. That would've been weird. And probably poisonous. Natsu wasn't Cobra, and he probably couldn't digest the toxic lighter fluid.

"Natsu….." everybody groaned. Throwing up his hands in submission, Natsu tossed his plastic bag full of useless items into the corner.

"So, when does this quest start?" he asked enthusiastically. _Finally, somebody gets to the point. To think it was Natsu, though._ Lucy stifled a laugh.

"Now, I guess. It's not even noon yet, so there's no use into waiting until tomorrow," replied Levy. Everybody nodded. They'd only need about half an hour to pack, just in time for the 12:15 train.

"Ok, it's settled then," said Lucy, "Everybody can go pack. We'll meet at Magnolia station in time for the 12:15 train to Rosemary. Um, Kagura, there still _is_ a train route to Rosemary, right?" The gravity mage nodded.

"Yes, probably," replied Kagura," They usually don't get rid of train tracks." The group had a silent agreement, and everybody ran off to pack. Lucy was the only one who didn't leave immediately, as she stood there for a moment longer, the image of the locket burned onto the insides of her eyelids.


End file.
